Android N new features

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Android N has many new features that will appeal to both Android users and software developers. This is, of course, an early preview, and it’s possible that some of these features won’t make it into the final release. Perhaps the most visible new feature for end users is native support for split-screen view. This feature is great for users, but will mean some additional work for developers. Since your screens can now be viewed with an arbitrary aspect ratio, you’ll have to test your UI designs more thoroughly. You can use either virtual or physical devices for this, but it’s important to include larger screens such as tablets in your testing plan.

- [Voiceover] Android N has many new featuresthat will appeal to both Android usersand software developers.This is of course an early previewand it's possible that some of these featureswon't make it into the final release.But here are a few of the new version's capabilities.Perhaps the most visible new feature for N usersis native support for split screen view.I'm showing a Nexus 5X onto which I've loaded Android Nand I'm projecting the phone's screen to my computerusing casting and reflector two.

Now I'm going to open up Chrome,let's say then that I wanted to switch to Maps.In the past I would exit that applicationand then I would go to Maps,but let's say now that I want to look at both appsat the same time.One simple way to do that is to go to the recent apps listand then touch and hold on the app you want to displayand then drag it up to the top of the screen,then touch it again in the recent apps list,and now you're looking at both Mapsand Chrome at the same time.

There's a separator icon you can drag upand down as you like.And then when you're done with the split viewyou can get rid of it by just dragging the separator iconall the way in either direction.This feature will probably bemost interesting to tablet users,who typically would use it in landscape mode.And the process is pretty much the same.Go to your recent apps list,touch and hold, and then drag to the left,then touch on that recent app screen again,and once again you see a very useful split view.

If you change your orientation while you're in split viewit changes elegantly.There's one other way to get into the split view mode,but you have to use an experimental tool.I'll drag down from the top of the screenand then touch and hold the gear icon until it spins,when I release it I'm taken to the settings screenand I see a message saying that somethingcalled the System UI Tuner has been added.I'll find it down at the bottom of my settings list.

I'll then touch System UI Tuner,I'll read the warning saying that this is experimental,and I'll touch got it to dismiss the dialog,then I will touch other, and then I'll turn on this featureenable split screen swipe-up gesture.Then I'll return back to my home screen,I'll once again open one of those apps,then I will touch and swipe upon the recent apps list button.And I immediately go into split screen view.I can then look for the app I want to display,select it, and once again I'm in split screen.

And then I'll get rid of split screenby dragging the separator all the way down to the bottom.Android N also made some changesto the quick settings screen.You can edit this screen to add your own favorite shortcuts,but also there are now multiple screens.And there are also changes to the notification system.They're grouped differently,but you can also manage appsright from this screen instead of having to goto the settings area.If I touch and hold on one of these notificationsI immediately see this optionthat let's me block notificationsfor this particular application.

I'll select that option and the notification goes away.There are other new features available for users.In addition to the changes to notifications,there are also changes to how battery life is extendedthrough the Doze mechanism.There are other new features in the recent apps screen,and you'll find that there's no more waitingwhile apps are optimized, or recompiledeach time Android is updated.That recompilation process is now delayeduntil you open each app.

It still has to be done,but it's no longer done all at the same time,delaying your upgrades.For developers the most important single changeis the move from Google's own implementation of Javato OpenJDK.This adds all sorts of new featuresthat you can use in your programming.To support many of these featuresthere's a new compiler toolchain.These are called Jack and Jill.You can learn about the Jack and Jill toolchainon this page at tech-docs/jackandjillon the tools.android.com website.

There's a useful diagram on this pagethat describes the process of moving from your Javaand class files to the dex filesthat are vital for running an app on an Android device.You'll also find information about how to configurethe Jack compiler in your Gradle scriptsand also this compiler now replaces the Proguard toolthat's used for shrinking and obfuscating your packagesbefore you deploy them to users.You'll find some basic information about how to use thisand as I'll describe later, this requires certain changesto your Gradle scripts.

Because we're now in the OpenJDK librariesAndroid now supports a certain amount of Java 8 syntax,including lambda expressionsand defaults methods in the interfaces.Some Java 8 APIs have also been implemented.For example, you can now create functional interfaces,but that doesn't mean you can use everything in Java 8.For example, the Java.time API is not currently availableand we haven't had any indications yetas to whether it will be upon final release.

There are changes to some existing APIs though,including those for notifications, messaging,direct boot process, directory access, and more.

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Released

3/17/2016

Android N is the next version of Google's blockbuster operating system for mobile devices. Developers can experiment with the new features and capabilities using the Android N Developer Preview and this concise quick start guide. David Gassner previews Android N highlights, such as the multi-window interface and new notification features, while guiding developers through installation of Android N and the Android Studio 2.1 Preview. He also touches on a few processes that are changing in Android N, including the new Jack and Jill compiler toolchain and programming with Java 8 syntax.